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Non-Coding RNA in Physiology and Pathophysiology: Second Edition
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Non-Coding RNA in Physiology and Pathophysiology: Second Edition

A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Biology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 August 2025 | Viewed by 1767

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Maria Rosaria Tumolo

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Biological & Environmental Sciences & Technology, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy
2. National Research Council, Institute of Clinical Physiology, Lecce, Italy
Interests: micro RNA; non-coding RNA; human health; public health
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are a class of non-protein-coding transcripts widely expressed in mammalian cells with a tissue- and cell-specific distribution pattern. High-throughput RNA-sequencing technology has revealed the key role played by ncRNAs as developmental and evolutionary determinants of organismal complexity. NcRNA mainly includes microRNA (miRNA), long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), and circular RNA (circRNA). Among small ncRNAs, miRNAs are capable of post-transcriptionally regulating many targets, thus fine-tuning a wide range of cellular pathways. Long ncRNAs can, in turn, regulate miRNAs’ expression and control gene transcription, pre-mRNA processing, the transport of mature mRNAs to specific cellular compartments, the regulation of mRNA stability, and protein translation and turnover. CircRNAs are single-stranded, covalently closed RNA molecules that exert biological functions by acting as transcriptional regulators, miRNA sponges, and protein templates.

In recent decades, the dysregulation of ncRNAs has been implicated in a wide variety of pathological conditions, including pain, senescence and degenerative disease such as cardiometabolic disease, cancer, and neurodegenerative disorders. The functions of ncRNAs in pathogenesis are unique for each disorder, as are the pertinent networks of ncRNA/miRNA/mRNA that mediate these functions. Thus, further understanding ncRNA biogenesis, release, and effects may aid the discovery of diagnostic biomarkers or the development of effective therapeutics for degenerative and age-related diseases affecting modern society.

The aim of this Special Issue is to collect novel findings on molecular mechanisms related to ncRNA function in physiological and pathological conditions. Bioinformatics studies that explore how data analysis and computational technologies can reveal new targets for the implementation of innovative therapeutic strategies are also encouraged. Original research articles, up-to-date reviews, and commentaries are all welcome.

Dr. Maria Rosaria Tumolo
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • microRNA
  • long non-coding RNA
  • circular RNA
  • epigenetics
  • musculoskeletal pain
  • cardiovascular disease
  • metabolic disease
  • nervous system disorders
  • cancer
  • aging

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Related Special Issue

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 2174 KiB  
Article
Putative Epigenetic Regulator microRNAs (epi-miRNAs) and Their Predicted Targets in High-Fat Diet-Induced Cardiac Dysfunction: An In Silico Analysis in Obese Rats
by Márton Pipicz, Gergő Zalán Biró, Márton Richárd Szabó, Ágnes Zvara and Tamás Csont
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(5), 2247; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26052247 - 3 Mar 2025
Viewed by 808
Abstract
Obesity-related cardiac dysfunction is a significant global health challenge. High-fat diets (HFDs) are well-established models of obesity. HFD has been reported to induce cardiac dysfunction and alter cardiac miRNA expression, DNA methylation and histone modifications. Nevertheless, it remains unclear whether cardiac miRNAs altered [...] Read more.
Obesity-related cardiac dysfunction is a significant global health challenge. High-fat diets (HFDs) are well-established models of obesity. HFD has been reported to induce cardiac dysfunction and alter cardiac miRNA expression, DNA methylation and histone modifications. Nevertheless, it remains unclear whether cardiac miRNAs altered due to HFD target epigenetic regulator enzymes and function as epigenetic regulator miRNAs (epi-miRNAs), thereby contributing to HFD-induced epigenetic changes and cardiac dysfunction. To address this gap in our knowledge, this study aimed to identify putative cardiac epi-miRNAs and their potential epigenetic targets through an in silico analysis of a previously published miRNA dataset from Sprague Dawley rats subjected to HFD. Using two independent databases, miRDB and miRWalk, predicted miRNA-mRNA interactions were analyzed. A total of 71 miRNAs were identified in our present study as putative epi-miRNAs. A total of 34 epi-miRNAs were upregulated (e.g., miR-92b-3p, let-7c-5p, miR-132-3p), and 37 were downregulated (e.g., miR-21-3p, miR-29c-3p, miR-199a-3p) in response to HFD. Epi-miRNAs targeted 81 individual epigenetic regulators (e.g., Dnmt3a, Ezh2, Hdac4, Kdm3a) with 202 possible miRNA–target interactions. Most of the targeted epigenetic regulators were involved in histone modification. An epi-miRNA–target analysis indicated increased DNA methylation and histone acetylation and decreased histone methylation in the hearts of HFD-fed rats. These findings suggest the importance of epi-miRNA-induced epigenetic changes in HFD-related cardiac dysfunction. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Non-Coding RNA in Physiology and Pathophysiology: Second Edition)
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21 pages, 139910 KiB  
Article
Inhibition of LncRNA H19 Attenuates Testicular Torsion-Induced Apoptosis and Preserves Blood–Testis Barrier Integrity
by Linxin Cheng, Zhibao Yin, Han Liu, Sijing Shi, Limin Lv, Yixi Wang, Meng Zhou, Meishuang Li, Tianxu Guo, Xiyun Guo, Guang Yang, Junjun Ma, Jinbo Yu, Yu Zhang, Shuguang Duo, Lihua Zhao and Rongfeng Li
Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2025, 26(5), 2134; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms26052134 - 27 Feb 2025
Viewed by 547
Abstract
Testicular torsion is a common emergency in adolescents, and can lead to severe ischemia reperfusion injury (IRI). LncRNA H19 has been shown to increase during ischemia, but its role in testicular IRI remains unknown. Focusing on this research gap, we utilized H19 biallelic [...] Read more.
Testicular torsion is a common emergency in adolescents, and can lead to severe ischemia reperfusion injury (IRI). LncRNA H19 has been shown to increase during ischemia, but its role in testicular IRI remains unknown. Focusing on this research gap, we utilized H19 biallelic mutant mice and Sertoli cell line (TM4) to construct in vivo and in vitro models of ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) and oxygen–glucose deprivation/reperfusion (OGD/R). Compared to WT I/R mice, H19−/− I/R mice showed milder tissue disorganization and cell loss, with a more intact blood–testis barrier (BTB). The cell viability decreased, ROS levels and apoptosis-related factors such as Bax/Bcl-2 increased in TM4 cells after OGD/R, whereas these changes were reversed when H19 was knocked down followed by OGD/R (si-H19+OGD/R). In contrast, over-expression of H19 in TM4 cells exacerbates OGD/R-induced cell apoptosis. Through in-depth analysis of KEGG-enriched pathways, the PI3K/AKT pathway was identified as a potential target of H19 modulation. Western blotting confirmed that, in OGD/R cells, elevated H19 levels were accompanied by the excessive AKT phosphorylation and the tight junction marker ZO-1 degradation; and in si-H19+OGD/R cells, the decreased AKT phosphorylation was recovered and the up-regulated ZO-1 expression was weakened simultaneously via using the AKT activator SC79. These results suggest that inhibiting H19 in OGD/R cells might preserve the integrity of the BTB by reversing the excessive phosphorylation of AKT. Moreover, H19 deficiency in si-H19+OGD/R cells alleviated the disturbances in glycolysis, fatty acid biosynthesis, and amino acid metabolism. Our study indicates that H19 might be a potential therapeutic target for clinic testicular I/R treatment. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Non-Coding RNA in Physiology and Pathophysiology: Second Edition)
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